Call it a hunch or call it a gamble, but the Packers spent slot 217 on Xavier Thomas, a name most had 29 spots down the list. They moved the roster forward and banked a B- for it.
The Perry pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged. Leaving quarterback unaddressed is the roster risk they will have to answer for in the fall.
They went 5 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for. Nearly every premium pick went to that side of the ball.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but quarterback.
Pick-by-Pick
R1.25
· Pick 25
· Kamren Kinchens
· S
· rank 25
In the 25th pick they get an enforcer at safety at fair value.
R2.9
· Pick 41
· Edgerrin Cooper
· LB
· rank 59
They reached into another round for Edgerrin Cooper, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
R2.25
· Pick 57
· Kris Jenkins
· DL-EDGE
· rank 47
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Kris Jenkins at No. 57 is the proof. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
R3.25
· Pick 88
· Audric Estime
· RB
· rank 96
A reach for Audric Estime in slot 88; a little patience would have been rewarded. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
R3.29
· Pick 92
· Zak Zinter
· OG
· rank 94
No edge and no loss on Zak Zinter in pick No. 92; it is a wash and a sensible one. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
R4.25
· Pick 125
· Javon Foster
· OT
· rank 127
Javon Foster at the 125th overall pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A need, and now a little less of one.
R4.35
· Pick 135
· Nehemiah Pritchett
· CB
· rank 140
Nehemiah Pritchett in No. 135 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
R6.28
· Pick 203
· Isaiah Neyor
· WR
· rank 210
A straight-up fair deal on Isaiah Neyor at pick 203, value and slot in agreement. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
R6.42
· Pick 217
· Xavier Thomas
· DE-EDGE
· rank 246
Xavier Thomas at slot 217 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
R6.44
· Pick 219
· Jase McClellan
· RB
· rank 209
Jase McClellan at the Round 6 slot is money in the bank, a running back taken below his worth. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
R7.26
· Pick 246
· Mark Perry
· S
· rank 235
Mark Perry in the 246th overall pick is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.